Crappiest engines ever?

[Eye of the Tiger]

Yes you have.

can't think of any horrible engines off the top of my head

[280Z Turbo]

can't think of any horrible engines off the top of my head

There must be a turd in your infamous 15.

[Eye of the Tiger]

There must be a turd in your infamous 15.

The LeMans's 350 was probably the worst, but it almost always ran, and was fairly quick. Since it was so old and poorly maintained, I'd say the fact that it still ran as well as it did was a testament to the quality of the engine, rather than its crappiness.

[Onslaught]

I've never owned a car with a bad one. I'm not sure what the crappiest motor I've ever driven would be. Probably whatever was in that Yugo.

[Soup DeVille]

Had it been made 7 years earlier, that motor likely would have been rated at 270+ hp.

Quite likely. '70 high compression 500s were rated at 395 HP. '75 Low compression 500s were rated at 225.

Modern dyno tests of both when restored to factory spec have them within 20 HP of one another.

[the Teuton]

Other than the fact that the truck felt like it was going to top out at 75 mph, I rather liked the 3.9 with the 5-speed manual in the Dakota.  It felt very "truck man" truckish.  It was kinda endearing.

[FoMoJo]

Surely a candidate for crappiest engine ever must be the 2.3L I4 SOHC engine used in the Chevrolet Vega.  I've never owned one, but I've heard, smelt and seen them disappearing in a cloud of oil smoke going down the road.  Whoever thought that an aluminium block with no steel cylinder inserts was a good idea .

[Soup DeVille]

Surely a candidate for crappiest engine ever must be the 2.3L I4 SOHC engine used in the Chevrolet Vega.  I've never owned one, but I've heard, smelt and seen them disappearing in a cloud of oil smoke going down the road.  Whoever thought that an aluminium block with no steel cylinder inserts was a good idea .

Oooh, the cosworth twin-cam Vega engine has to be near the all time top of the list, I'd imagine.

[El Barto]

The 3.0L Duratec V6 in my Mom's 2005 Mercury Montego.  That's the same engine that's in my Dad's 2000 Sable.  It feels underpowered in the Sable, why the hell did Ford put the same engine in a heavier car? 

[Eye of the Tiger]

The 3.0L Duratec V6 in my Mom's 2005 Mercury Montego.  That's the same engine that's in my Dad's 2000 Sable.  It feels underpowered in the Sable, why the hell did Ford put the same engine in a heavier car? 

You think the Duratec is underpowered in the Sable? Drive one with a Vulcan. 

[MX793]

The 3.0L Duratec V6 in my Mom's 2005 Mercury Montego.  That's the same engine that's in my Dad's 2000 Sable.  It feels underpowered in the Sable, why the hell did Ford put the same engine in a heavier car? 

The lazy 4AT doesn't do the Duratec30 any favors in the Taurus/Sable, but it's really not that bad of an engine.  Worked pretty well in the Mazda6 and the Lincoln LS/Jag S-type.

[S204STi]

Noble uses the Duratec, don't they?

[FoMoJo]

Oooh, the cosworth twin-cam Vega engine has to be near the all time top of the list, I'd imagine.

I'm sure you know that the Cosworth version is a much improved version of the original Vega engine.  Once they included cylinder sleeves and an extra cam, it was a pretty good engine.  The original one was a pile of crap.

[Soup DeVille]

I'm sure you know that the Cosworth version is a much improved version of the original Vega engine.  Once they included cylinder sleeves and an extra cam, it was a pretty good engine.  The original one was a pile of crap.

For the price they charged for it, for the power it made, and for the still dreadful reliability, not to mention the problem with attaching the Cosworth name to such a thing, it all adds up to a big ball of awfulness.

Yes, on technical merits alone, it was much improved over the standard Vega engine: but that was an unabashed economy engine. The Cosworth was a tarted up economy engine sold and priced as if it was taken directly out of an F1 car.

Now, I've stated before that I think they're now cool as collector cars, and I buy one if the heavens ever aligned to permit me such an indulgence, and drive it proudly, but that doesnt change what it was when it was new.

[FoMoJo]

The 3.0L Duratec V6 in my Mom's 2005 Mercury Montego.  That's the same engine that's in my Dad's 2000 Sable.  It feels underpowered in the Sable, why the hell did Ford put the same engine in a heavier car? 

The 2.5 Duratec, from which the 3.0 was derived was, originally engineered by Porsche who sold it to Ford who had Cosworth tweak it up a bit.  It's a pretty good engine but overused in NA applications without the proper upgrades.

As mentioned, with a couple of turbos bolted on, it's used in the Noble M400.  There are a number of other applications as well.

[FoMoJo]

For the price they charged for it, for the power it made, and for the still dreadful reliability, not to mention the problem with attaching the Cosworth name to such a thing, it all adds up to a big ball of awfulness.

Yes, on technical merits alone, it was much improved over the standard Vega engine: but that was an unabashed economy engine. The Cosworth was a tarted up economy engine sold and priced as if it was taken directly out of an F1 car.

Now, I've stated before that I think they're now cool as collector cars, and I buy one if the heavens ever aligned to permit me such an indulgence, and drive it proudly, but that doesnt change what it was when it was new.

Yes, I agree that for what it was perceived to be, it fell a bit short.

[El Barto]

The Duratec is a good engine, just not the Taurus/Sable and definitely not in something the size of the Five Hundred/Montego.  The Lincoln and Jag versions had over 230hp and the Mazda 6 had a 220hp version, but the Taurus/Sable only had 200hp and the Five Hundred/Montego had 203hp.

[280Z Turbo]

The 2.5 Duratec, from which the 3.0 was derived was, originally engineered by Porsche who sold it to Ford who had Cosworth tweak it up a bit.  It's a pretty good engine but overused in NA applications without the proper upgrades.

As mentioned, with a couple of turbos bolted on, it's used in the Noble M400.  There are a number of other applications as well.

The 3.0L version feels very strong and torquey in the Mazda Tribute that I'm currently driving. I like it.

[Eye of the Tiger]

The 3.0L version feels very strong and torquey in the Mazda Tribute that I'm currently driving. I like it.

Secretly swap it into your Focus when nobody is looking.

[Eye of the Tiger]

[280Z Turbo]

That's fantastic.

I would keep the Focus until it rusted out if I had that motor.

[Eye of the Tiger]

That's fantastic.

I would keep the Focus until it rusted out if I had that motor.

Buy Ed's car and swap everything over. He'll probably give to you for next to nothing. You can DD the Z until you finish the swap.

[Eye of the Tiger]

it's too bad you have a Zetec POS. I miss my Focus. The 2.0 Duratec was pretty fun once I slapped on a cold air intake and 4-1 header. It really opened up the top end, and was nearly as quick as an SVT. I was gonna get big cams next, but then I sold it so could be a poor college student.

[280Z Turbo]

Buy Ed's car and swap everything over. He'll probably give to you for next to nothing. You can DD the Z until you finish the swap.

I can't DD that car. I'd rather DD my dad's Corvette.

[280Z Turbo]

it's too bad you have a Zetec POS. I miss my Focus. The 2.0 Duratec was pretty fun once I slapped on a cold air intake and 4-1 header. It really opened up the top end, and was nearly as quick as an SVT. I was gonna get big cams next, but then I sold it so could be a poor college student.

The 2.0L Duratec has 6 more hp than I do.

[Eye of the Tiger]

I can't DD that car. I'd rather DD my dad's Corvette.

So DD your dad's vette until you finish the swap.

[Eye of the Tiger]

The 2.0L Duratec has 6 more hp than I do.

Mine had like 16 more hp than you do.

[280Z Turbo]

So DD your dad's vette until you finish the swap.

That's too old and rickety as well.

It feels like it's made out of wood and the brakes are made out of playdoh. It also probably gets 12 mpg.

[280Z Turbo]

Mine had like 16 more hp than you do.

Good for you, but the 2008 Duratec Focus is rated for 136 hp.

[Eye of the Tiger]

That's too old and rickety as well.

It feels like it's made out of wood and the brakes are made out of playdoh. It also probably gets 12 mpg.

If you just hurry up and finish the V6 swap into the Focus, you won't have to suffer for very long.